Short science fiction novel "Hidden Numbers", by Iger Turper. Recommendation index ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆.
<h1>The text of the novel</h1>
Dr. Simon Tomlin scrutinized the man sitting across the table. The latter kept rocking his chair back and forth, his shoulders hanging low, his eyes scanning the room from time to time; every few seconds, his lips twitched, giving the impression of a big squirrel. It is hard to believe that before the mental breakdown, he was one of the world's most famous mathematicians.
"How are you feeling today, Professor Elsham?" Dr. Tomlin asked.
"Nice, nice. Thank you. The man bowed his head, and his eyelids did not pluck.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
"Oh, good. Slept very well throughout the night and slept soundly. Professor Elsham replied, nodding his head very vigorously as the chair shook rhythmically. There was never any eye contact between the two men.
"That's fine."
Suddenly, Elsham stopped shaking and looked straight at Tomlin with his eyes hooked, his two eyeballs as if they were about to pop out. He said in a sharp voice, "Doctor, I understand in my heart. You're sure to think I'm a lunatic. Don't you think that I know very well that you have such thoughts? All of them think that Raslu Brim's statement is a fool's dream, and they want you to think so. He stared at Dr. Tomlin tightly, his body motionless and his eyes not blinking.
"Who are they talking about, Professor?" Who wants me to think I'm crazy too? Who is Raslu Brim? ”
"That's the number!" It's the hidden number that Professor Rasru Brim is looking for. People say that numbers don't lie, but it's the numbers that lie, they lie all the time, they always lie. But they can't deceive me—ah, they can't deceive me, I've seen through their tricks, I know they're hiding. Professor Elsham finished and began to shake in his chair again.
"Which numbers are hidden, Professor?"
"Brim, that's it. Brim! Elsham shouted, "banging" on the table with his fists. Then he leaned over to Dr. Tomlin's side and whispered, "That's the mysterious integer between 3 and 4." ”
"Our mathematicians have already solved this problem, Professor! There is no other integer between 3 and 4. ”
"Doctor, go talk to Professor Raslu Brim." Elsham said slyly, "Alas, you can't find him anymore—he's dead." He laughed. Then he leaned over to Dr. Tomlin and whispered, "He died because he wanted to uncover the secret of this mysterious integer Brim." ”
"Professor Raslu Brim was killed in a car accident, Professor."
"Ah, don't be childish! He published a paper detailing his findings: He found a hitherto unknown integer that was just between 1 and 20. He announced that he was working to find evidence of the integer's existence and its exact location. Just a week after his paper was published — boom! Brim was in a car accident and died. His house was also burned down, and all written records were destroyed. The next day, the computer system at his university was completely paralyzed, and all electronic records were deleted. Professor Brim was too close to that mysterious number, see? Therefore, he himself was removed from this world by some mysterious force. If you believe me, I tell you, I'll end up like him. ”
At this point, Dr. Tomlin felt powerless. He decided to play his trump card.
"All right, Professor. If there is such an integer — there is a hidden integer between 3 and 4 — then positive integers can all be used to count, right, professor? ”
"Yes, doctor." Elsham nodded, and then, as if to prove this truth to the doctor, he shook his head from side to side and began to count, "1, 2, 3, Brim, 4..."
"Professor, concede!" Dr. Tomlin interrupted the professor, "If Brim is an integer that can be counted, that means you can use Brim to represent something." ”
"Of course." Elsham said, "Doctor, I didn't know you were a mathematician too. He looked blankly at Dr. Tomlin. Listening to Elsham's voice, the expression on his face should be a smile, but it looked like a full face of anger.
"Professor, please be patient and look at this." Dr. Tomlyn said, reaching for a small plastic bag from his pocket.
"What is this, doctor?" Elsham asked.
"Jelly beans." Tomlin smiled. He opened the plastic bag and poured the contents on the table, about 20 colorful jelly beans.
"Now, Professor Elsham, I would like to ask you to separate Brim's jelly bean from the other sugars." Dr. Tomlin had a triumphant smile on his face.
"Okay!" Elsham said, and leaned over the table. He first separated three of the sugar beans from the pile, looked at the three suspiciously, then at the large pile, and then looked back at the three in front of him. He quickly grabbed another one from the pile and placed it among the three. He examined the fourth jelly bean, felt something was wrong, and wanted to put it back, but before he could let go, he took it back and added it to the three. Dr. Tomlin saw clearly that Professor Elsham had begun to agitate. He took all four jelly beans in his hand and gathered them in front of his eyes, constantly turning them over and over to watch, his face full of doubt. He carefully counted the four jelly beans in his hand, and then sat down helplessly in his chair—not so much frustration as anger.
"I can't tell, doctor." The professor said.
"That is to say, Brim is not an integer at all." Tomlin said triumphantly.
"Absolutely!" Elsham shouted, "exhaled", swept the jelly beans on the table and flew all over the house. "Brim is there! But there's something that's stopping me from separating the Brim Jelly Beans! I can separate 3 or 4, but I can't separate Brim! ”
"Calm and calm, professor. I'm just watching here, nothing stopping you, nothing stopping you from separating the Brim Jelly Beans. Unless there's another reason, it's that Brim doesn't exist. ”
"But it does exist." Elsham said seriously. After a moment of silence, as if his confidence was growing, he said, "It does exist." I can attest to that! ”
"How do you prove it, Professor Elsham?" If you insist that there is a mysterious, invisible, ubiquitous force that has hidden Brim, what are you going to prove? ”
"Doctor, you know," said Elsham, in an unusually eerie tone, "that I am a mathematician, a very good mathematician. All mathematicians have been seduced by that mysterious force, whose purpose is to cover up the fact that Brim really exists, you know? But, as early as 20 years ago, I built a theory, which is a branch of number theory. I think I can use this theory to prove Brim's real existence, to find this mysterious integer between 3 and 4. Only in this way can number theory be perfectly unified. I once gave a speech on this topic, but during the course of the speech, I was rudely interrupted several times by my colleagues. For this reason, I have also made a big deal out of it. ”
Tomlin smiled in his heart: He was really angry! It is said that the lecture hall was smashed and repaired for two weeks.
"Your colleagues don't seem to be quite convinced by your proof, Professor." Tomlin said.
"That's because I haven't come up with all the details of the proof yet." Elsham said, "Even if I presented all the details, the idiots would not understand the significance of my research." He said angrily, "But I'm very close, doctor, and I can feel it." Let me get out of you, let me continue my research. In a few months, I can have a perfect proof. Or, at least, you can provide me with pen and paper, and here I can also conduct research. ”
Apparently, Professor Elsham's brain was overexcited. Dr. Tomlin decided not to provoke him further.
"All right, Professor." Tomlin said, "I'll seriously consider your request." However, I would also like to ask you a question. ”
"What's the problem, doctor?"
"What is it that makes some people keep the existence of a number a secret?"
"Now I can't be sure." Professor Elsham shook his head and said, "Maybe There is something mysterious in Brim—don't look at me like that, Doctor—or some people believe it has some mysterious power." Elsham paused for a moment, a smile of excitement on his face, "Perhaps, the knowledge of Brim will bring us to a higher level of mathematics." It might help us build a very viable mathematical theoretical model of time travel; or help us build a mathematical theoretical model of faster-than-light travel; or who knows what else is there. ”
"I understand." Tomlin said, "Do you really think Brim's discovery would make these ideas possible?" ”
"I can't say for sure, but who can say it can't?" Elsham shrugged and asked rhetorically.
"I see what you mean." Tomlin said, "Oh, Professor. I'm glad to talk to you so much. Your statement will make me think about a lot of things. We'll see each other in a few days. ”
The two shook hands, and Professor Elsham left the room. Dr. Tomlin sat in his chair stunned for a moment, his eyes staring blankly at the jelly beans scattered across the room.
Tomlin thought it was so sad that a scholar, a mathematician who had devoted his life to the study of number theory, could fantasize that the so-called mysterious number would come and harm him! Of course, such a performance is also very common for a paranoid patient. It seems that Professor Elsham has become obsessed with this mysterious number.
Dr. Tomlin was not very satisfied with the afternoon meeting with Professor Elsham. He had hoped to use the example of Jelly Bean to force Elsham to understand how ridiculous his views were, but it only intensified his delusional symptoms. Judging by Elsham's strong reaction, Dr. Tomlin felt that he might have stabbed the most sensitive part of the root of Professor's delusional disorder.
Fortunately, there has been new progress in the communication between doctors and patients. Tomlin began to pack up his things and prepare to go home. Before leaving the hospital, he instructed the nurse who was nursing Elsham not to allow the patient to touch everything that could be used to write.
That night, Dr. Tomlin tossed and turned, having trouble falling asleep. As soon as he closed his eyes, an illusion appeared in front of him: a group of giant numbers surrounded him like a large army, and the general who led this digital army was the phantom mysterious integer, Brim. Feeling very heavy in his heart, he took a notebook from the bedside table and wrote down ten numbers from 1 to 10 on it. It seems that these crooked figures do little harm to humans. Numbers are the cornerstone of all science, and it is with numbers that modern civilization is possible. He couldn't help but feel a lot of respect for the numbers in front of him. He pored over the numbers, one by one, and read them carefully: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. All on this piece of paper, there is no need to have another Brim, nor a place for Brim. His mood finally calmed down. Unconsciously, Dr. Tomlin fell asleep.
Early the next morning, Dr. Tomlin was awakened by a rushing telephone ringing. It was Jean, a nurse at the hospital. She reported that Professor Elsham was missing.
Tomlin hurried back to the hospital. As soon as he arrived, Jean greeted him, explained what had happened, and denied any possibility of dereliction of duty. At ten o'clock the night before, Jean had done the last routine check of the day, when Professor Elsham was still in good condition. But when Jean made his rounds at six o'clock in the morning, Professor Elsham was gone. The people on duty at night also did not find anything unusual. One can only accept the fact that Professor Elsham has disappeared, disappeared without a trace.
"I think we'll go to his room and have a look." Jean said.
Dr. Tomlin followed Jean into Professor Elsham's hospital room. He was shocked by what he was worried about, and the worst thing he had feared had finally happened.
The walls of the room were filled with rows and rows of mathematical symbols, densely packed with mathematical formulas and equations. Many of the symbols that Dr. Tomlin didn't recognize. The handwriting was crooked, and it was obvious that the professor's hand was shaking as he wrote these things. The handwriting is light red. He must have written these things in the moonlight and all night long.
Dr. Tomlin looked around and found in a corner a pool of liquid that Professor Elsham used to make ink. He walked over and leaned over to look closely, and there was an overturned plastic cup on top of the liquid. He dipped his fingers in some liquid and tasted it with the tip of his tongue. It is grape juice. Floating above the grape juice is a simple writing instrument, a straw. In the other corner of the room was all of Professor Elsham's clothes. But Professor Elsham couldn't see even a shadow.
"It seems that the professor also left us some snacks." Jean behind Dr. Tomlin said.
Dr. Tomlin turned and saw Gene reaching for three little black objects on the bedside table.
Tomlin hurriedly shouted, "Don't move! ”
"Doctor, it's just three jelly beans." Jean said, picking up a grain and gently tossing it into the air. Dr. Tomlin was horrified to see that the jelly bean had drawn a beautiful parabola in the air, and a "snap" fell right into Jean's mouth.
"Would you like to take one, doctor?" Jean asked, pointing to the two remaining jelly beans on the nightstand.
Dr. Tomlin looked down and was stunned: on the bedside table, three jelly beans were still in sight.
<h1>Parsing (according to the Hidden Numbers micro-film</h1>).
The basic meaning of this novel is that the core theme is about multi-dimensional space, and the fourth dimension here is time. In order to facilitate a better understanding of the novel, we make the following three conventions.
The first one. It is said that although ants live in three-dimensional space, they can only perceive the two-dimensional world. For example, if you put an ant on the floor, we will see the ants climb from the floor to the wall and then to the ceiling. But the ant did think that it had been crawling along a plane. (True or false, we don't care, if you want to understand this novel, you can first accept this point of view by default, otherwise it is not easy to understand).)
Second, we directly refer to the two protagonists in the novel by terms of doctors and mathematicians. There is also a mysterious force that causes the death of many mathematicians, which is not described in the novel, in short, a force that prevents humans from reaching Bleem. Let's assume it's the number Bleem.
Third, we are based on the "Hidden Numbers" micro-film, the film you can see from the Internet. It is consistent with the core of the novel, just for the convenience of understanding, and some plots have been added.
Well, after the agreement above, let's start explaining.
When our doctor was young, he had a car accident that killed a person on the spot, and there were jelly beans and a marker on the ground. This incident left a deep impression on him deeply. Until he grew up to become a psychiatrist and saw the mathematician in front of him.
Mathematicians say he found an integer between 3 and 4, which is pronounced Bleem. But it can't be proven yet, but he just found it. Because of this incident, he was considered to have a mental problem. Doctors have tried many methods, but they have not been able to calm the mathematicians. So, the doctor took out a handful of jelly beans and asked the doctor to count, one, two, three..., four. The mathematician can't count the first Jelly Bean, he knows there is, but he can't count it.
Finally, the mathematician once again reiterates that there really is an integer between 3 and 4, and vows to prove it.
Feeling that today's treatment was not working well, the doctor decided to try again another day. He asked the nurse to take the mathematician back to the ward and asked the nurse not to give him pens and paper in case he fell into it again, but the doctor stole a marker pen and a handful of jelly beans.
The next day, the doctor was woken up by a hurried phone call. He was told that the mathematician had mysteriously disappeared from the room. The doctor went to the mathematician's room and found that the walls were full of mathematical formulas. Yes, mathematicians have proven the existence of Bleem, so mathematicians enter the fourth dimension and disappear. At this time, the doctor saw a marker on the floor, exactly the same as what he had seen at the scene of the car accident when he was a child. That is, the mathematician went through the four dimensions, went to the doctor's childhood, and for reasons unknown (probably too close to the bleem), was hit by a car and killed. It may be a coincidence, but it's more like doom.
There were still three jelly beans on the bedside table in the mathematician's room, and the doctor's assistant picked up one, threw it into the air, opened his mouth, and the jelly bean drew a perfect arc and fell into the assistant's mouth. At this time, the mathematician was surprised to see that there were still three jelly beans on the bedside table.
At this point, the story is finished, I think everyone understands a little, in fact, the main line is not complicated. It is that mathematicians have found the entrance or method of four-dimensional space, which is a mathematical method, and if you want to completely crack it, you must prove the existence of another integer bleem hidden between 3 and 4. The mathematician succeeds, and then travels back to when the doctor was a child, and because he was too close to the truth, he was hit by a car and died, and the doctor who happened to be a child was on the spot.
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